S.C. Primary: To Whom Shall My Vote Go?

By admin

Here on the eve of the S.C. Primary I’m still torn juggling electability, political philosophies, voting records and a host of other considerations for the current candidates.

So right off the top, Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich just scare me. Mitt Romney has flip flopped so much he um…just kinda comes off unstable to me, however if I was forced to vote for him I will. The same for Gingrich with the unstable thing and even more his personal life is also um… unstable (and I’m being nice)? I believe in forgiveness but I also believe in integrity, hence someone who has serious commitment issues in there private life, it will affect their public life eventually, there is a core character malfunction there. So that leaves me with two candidates to choose from Rick Santorum and Ron Paul. For the past two weeks I have read through both candidates personal lives and public voting records, impressed in some places disgusted in others. I’ll just skim the surface with my explanations here.

Ron Paul

The admiration I have for Ron Paul is rooted in the common love for freedom and justice as seen through the eyes of the founders of America. Also Ron Paul challenges the status quo and he stands distinguished among others in Washington however I question his extremes. As a Christian and a lover of liberty just as much as the next man, I have several unanswered questions about Libertarian philosophy. I’ve read more literature written by America’s founders than any other genre and have memorized large portions of the The Law by Frederick Bastiat. I have the constitution on audio to put me to sleep some nights and I carry a spare in my back pocket at all times. I could recite Patrick Henry’s address to the Virginia Convention of 1775 with such passion I’d probably be in tears before the conclusion. I celebrate American ideology yet I also know it is riddled with contradictions of the highest proportion. I’ve said all that to say, I’m an ardent believer in constitutional rights and personal liberty as prescribed by the constitution and more importantly the Bible, yet I sense a disconnect with certain parts of Libertarian philosophy. This disconnect could merely be a result of my ignorance in thoroughly understanding Libertarianism, but most libertarians don’t even agree across the board, however I can always stand corrected.

Nonetheless the inconsistency of libertarian beliefs in varying populations makes me reluctant to support Ron Paul. Yes liberty should be a common denominator that bring us all together because it is in fact the denominator that caused America to be. Yet, I question if the libertarian view of liberty is a bit too liberal? Every man is entitled to practice what he so chooses, be it his practice does not infringe on the rights of other, yes. I agree the Federal Government should have no right to enter our private lives but the truth of the matter is government will always be and is not going away. Many Libertarians tend to play the victim a little too much to the extent they can rightly justify their anarchy. Yes governments have wronged us all in some way shape or form but not every bill that passes in Washington is not a conspiracy of some degree. My biggest issue with Ron Paul aside from his foreign policy and despite his purist tendencies and his on the fringe of a riot supporters is his sense of a biblical worldview, or the lack thereof.

At least a biblical acknowledgement of some sort. I understand he states he is a believer in Christ and he doesn’t speak of his faith because he doesn’t want to seem to exploit it, however it is important (at least to me). I remember speaking with Michelle Bachmann’s Campaign director Alice Stewart when Bachmann was still in the race, and during my interview she made a statement that stuck with me. In a question I asked concerning candidates personal and private life being one in the same in her explanation she said, “people who say their faith doesn’t influence their politics, that tells you their faith isn’t very important to them.”  When she said theses words they sunk deep and rung true in the core of my being.

So, the reason I find Paul’s position off is because it seems he doesn’t acknowledge law as having a moral nature or influencing moral behavior in a society. Paul has stated “you can’t teach people to be moral” in support of his position. The problem with this statement is that law does and always will shape the way a society perceives morality. Every law that is passed translates a standard that; this is right, and this is wrong. Yes, we can’t force someone to be moral through legislation however legislation will inevitable shape the way morality is perceived within a culture. If Ron Paul is President I believe change will come financially and government will be smaller however the moral integrity of our nation will take a hit for the worse. I agree wholeheartedly with the degree of change Paul wants to make in washington financially but morally I feel like we lose as a nation.  After reading his positions and beliefs I felt I was left with the option to choose personal liberties at the expense of societal moral degradation. As a Christian I’m convicted with the thought of abandoning my post to be a light and preservation within my society.

Rick Santorum

I definitely don’t share the same admiration for Santorum as I do for Paul . Santorum just seems to the be too plain and simply the same as many other candidates. Of course among the slim choices of Republican candidates he does stand distinguished as the most “conservatives” as it relates to moral integrity. I just feel if Santorum is president things will stay the same. Rick Santorum seems to have a great understanding  of the vital functions of family within a society. He seems to have a pretty sound biblical worldview on many issues, however not all. My biggest qualm with Santorum apart from his corny appearance would probably be his voting record and the suspicions of being bought while a senator by large corporations. His votes seem to vary based on the election calendar many times. His record is full of big spending habits especially during the Bush administration as many other republicans. His support of earmarks, endorsement of Specter,*sigh*, and probably more than anything his electability factor. Unless he pulls off a big upset in Florida I don’t see him making it through and tapping out after Florida’s vote. If he could pull off a Iowa in Florida then he’s definitely back in the game though. Nonetheless, I’m still not sold on Santorum as many of my republican friends are, nor am I on Paul and his libertarian utopia like many of my other good friends are. So I’m voting for Romney J.K.!! (Seriously just kidding). I’ll decide in the booth though, and then write about it. Maybe I’ll have a change of heart for Gingrich, well see.

So I’m still undecided… I’ll more than likely decide in the booth.